Joe Morgan (Valparaiso Mayor, Florida, candidate 2026)
Joe Morgan ran for election to the Valparaiso Mayor in Florida. Morgan was on the ballot in the general election on March 10, 2026.[source]
Morgan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
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Click here to view Ballotpedia's local election coverage in Florida by county in 2026.
Biography
Joe Morgan provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on February 1, 2026:
- Bachelor's: University of South Alabama, 1980
- Military service: United States Army, 1980-2008
- Incumbent officeholder: No
Elections
General election
General election for Valparaiso Mayor
Joe Morgan (Nonpartisan), Patrick Palmer (Nonpartisan), and Christine Wasdin (Nonpartisan) ran in the general election for Valparaiso Mayor on March 10, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Joe Morgan (Nonpartisan)  | |
| Patrick Palmer (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Christine Wasdin (Nonpartisan) | ||
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| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Election results
Endorsements
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Joe Morgan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Morgan's responses.
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First, I am a citizen, who has claimed NW FL as my home my entire life, having a home in Valparaiso for over 30 years. Second, I am retired Army, having served in Korea, USA, Germany, SoCom, Bosnia and Iraq. Third, in addition to military service, I have always served - Volunteer EMT/Fireman, HS and Middle School Science teacher, Band Support, Youth Sports coaching, and more. These life experiences allowed me to become more open to ideas. In short, I been able to experience different cultures, backgrounds, and ways of doing things, and I learned that there is always room to learn more. Further, I have had great mentors, who have taught me how to lead and communicate, to listen, discern and decide, and lead me to great jobs all over the globe - from working as a Project Manager on a Construction Contract (AECOM) in Iraq, to working as a Dept of State Governance Advisor in (Mosel, Iraq), to working many leadership positions on major Army exercises 'downrange', to serving on local professional and government boards.
In conclusion, I've spent my life living the motto, "service before self", and I'd love to continue by serving as the Mayor of Valparaiso.- Local small governments are faced with a harsh reality - small budgets, aging infrastructure, and ever-increasing demands and costs. This requires meaningful and strategic leadership that communicates and facilitates meetings with staff and citizens to set priorities, feasibility, and funds to determine what we can execute NOW, along with prioritizing and setting aside funding pathways for the future.
- Being present - is a key attribute of being an elected official - especially as Mayor. I will be present - both for the staff and for the citizen.
- Valparaiso, established in 1921 is a small, geographically restrained "Bedroom Community", Its history is rich, and while wanting to maintain our charm, we do not need to be stuck in the past. New Vision. New Ideas, New ways of getting it done.
Citizen Engagement.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
